Report blames shrimp farming for human rights abuses

US (June 25, 2003) -- Lucrative shrimp farming in developing countries has led to widespread human rights abuses, including murder, child labor, and land seizure, a charity said recently.

"The human rights abuses associated with this industry are widespread and serious," said Steve Trent, director of the Environmental Justice Foundation, which released a report on the problem focusing on Asia and countries in Central and South America.

The profitable trade in nations such as Thailand, China, Indonesia, India, Vietnam, Bangladesh, and the Philippines has led to abuses including the seizure of land, the displacement of tens of thousands of people, and the pollution of much needed drinking water, the report said.

For instance, 20,000 fishers in Sri Lanka's Puttalam District migrated following declines of fish catches after the advent of shrimp farms, which often employ few people, the report said. Other displacements, often from rural areas to overcrowded cities, have affected 120,000 people from farmland in Satkhira, Bangladesh, and 48,000 in Andrah Pradesh state in India.

In Bangladesh, children collecting shrimp fry to stock shrimp farms often spend up to 13 hours a day in and around water, leaving many with skin and respiratory disorders, the report said.

The profitable industry often creates conflicts over land and suffers from corruption, poor governance, and greed, the London-based foundation said.

For those and other reasons, shrimp farming has been linked to murders in Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Bangladesh, the Philippines, and five countries in the Americas: Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Brazil, and Ecuador, according to the report.

"Most shrimp farmed in developing countries are eaten in Europe, the United States, and Japan. Consumers in these countries must be made aware that when they eat shrimp they may be dining on a delicacy responsible for hunger, suffering, and death," Trent said.

About one-third of the shrimp eaten in the world each year are grown on farms, nearly all of which are located in developing countries, the study said. Shrimping is worth US$6.9 billion to the farms and at least US$50 billion on retail markets, the foundation said.

Source : Associated Press